Saskatchewan is following the lead of other provinces and making education around the Holocaust mandatory for the province’s Grade 10 social studies course.
“Antisemitism, unfortunately, is a prejudice that remains a problem in Canada,” said Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill.
“Knowledge of the atrocities committed during the Holocaust is important for our youth as it helps reduce hate and discrimination in society.”
The province said a renewed social studies 10 curriculum will be introduced in two years, adding that teachers and other content experts will be involved in the renewal and implementation process.
Other provinces like B.C. and Ontario have taken similar stances.
B.C.’s Premier David Eby said on Oct. 30 that many B.C. teachers make a point of teaching their students about the murders of six million Jews and others by the Nazis during the Second World War as their classes discuss social justice, equality and the horrors of history.
He said that it wasn’t required in the curriculum.
The Jewish community has been calling for mandatory Holocaust education for “many decades,” he noted.
“We’re going to strengthen education, particularly when it comes to the extreme ideologies of Nazism (and Holocaust) denialism,” said Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce.
“We’re going to teach about other communities that have been impacted by the Holocaust, including the LGBT (community), individuals with disabilities, the Roma.”
More to come.